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Pia Leong - Babbel Magazine

Pia Leong

Born in tropical north Queensland, Australia, Pia is a theatre designer who somehow found herself traveling the world on a bicycle and living in a tent. "Remote Encounters" documents her courageous attempts to communicate in the local language on her travels.

Just when you think you finally understand German, you discover that many Germans also speak a regional dialect. We encountered one of these on the first leg of our bike journey, as we rode through the Black Forest.

It’s a good thing that South Americans love to talk! Getting into conversations with strangers has been the perfect way to practice my listening and speaking skills and bring my passive knowledge of Spanish closer to fluency.

The more willing I am to make mistakes, the more opportunities I have to practice speaking Spanish, and the more encouragement I get from interacting with people. It’s all about having a healthy mindset.

For the next 6 months, Pia and Jimmy will be cycling across South America with nothing but camping gear, cameras and a basic grasp of Spanish. Can they go the distance? Will their language skills improve along the way? Follow their video journey here — a new episode every month.